Locks and Keys
by Wilted Passion
Summary: Brolly's emotions were sealed away by his father. A Saiyan raised on Earth was forced into Frieza's army, and is split between his personalities of Goku and Kakarot. Perhaps they can help one another survive the turmoils of being a slave, whether to a tyrant, or their own minds. KakarotXBrolly, Slight VegetaXBulma. Yaoi.
1. Lock Them Away

Disclaimer: Uh-uh. Sorry.

Warning: There is YAOI, so if you no likeies, no readies, and no flameies without serious reason concerning my writing skills.

* * *

His mind was different. No one could ever possibly understand the pain he endured every waking moment. The pain he thrived in. His soul had always been dark and tainted from the day he was born. Violence in the most gruesome form was all he knew. His father encouraged it, and so he was brought up to think that the misery he wrought, and the civilizations he demolished were wonderful, so long as he could make his father proud.

He hated his father.

Paragus always wanted something from him. Control. Power. Strength – he was a tool. He'd heard the story, of how he'd been sentenced to death due to his frightening power. He knew how daddy dearest had fought and begged for him to be spared. Maybe, for a while, he had meant something more. He had been a son. He'd been something to cherish and love as a sentient being. But not for long.

He witnessed how Paragus would kill people. Snicker and call them weak. If that pleased him, he could satisfy his own blood lust, and do his only relative proud.

He knew that the second he began to kill more, to drag the deaths out, to enjoy it, that his father had become afraid of him. That fear manifested into indifference. Indifference allowed him to plot and scheme. To see Brolly as nothing more than a means to an end, even if he was the justification in the first place. But, once he began to breathe in the death and chaos, he became intoxicated. Addicted. He couldn't stop.

He'd once adored his father. But he had slaughtered the adoration the night before.

* * *

_Flashback..._

_He'd rested peacefully in the bed of some long forgotten person in some long forgotten town on some long forgotten planet. Dreams of his life thus far flitted across his closed lids. He'd been thinking lately...when he was about to kill a family of some sort, they would cling to one another for comfort – and while that was normally quite amusing, he wondered what it would be like for his father to "hug" him? He imagined warm feelings, and suddenly had a strong urge and tightening in his chest to be held like a cub once again. He was nearing his seventeenth year, but he was curious. What would it be like if his father was more open, and more affectionate? They were all they had, surely that would mean that some traditions would be let go of, right?_

_Regardless, Paragus had become very wary of his son. That was why he'd forced a scientist to craft a device for him to control him. Not so much his power as his emotions – the trigger of his power. Brolly would become cold and gelid, with no expression or life to him. A puppet for his father. Mindless. Or so he thought._

_Brolly had heard him when he spoke softly to himself. His eyes cracked open with sleep hanging off them. "Father...?" They both started. Paragus pinned his son to place the band on his forehead. Brolly squirmed and fought, but the craft connected with him. However, that was not all it took. The saiyan boy threw the man off of him, and immediately transformed. Betrayal was what he felt, but only a cruel smirk crept across his features as confusion and hurt shone in his eyes. Before he could get much closer, Paragus turned his palm towards him, and a soft emerald glow engulfed him._

_He could feel himself being pushed under water, drowning him and his control. His emotions were ripped from him, and locked within a stone chest in the darkest corner of his heart._

* * *

Now he stood, seething on the inside and unable to make contact with his emotions. He knew what he felt and thought, but was unable to actually experience it.

And thus, we're brought back to that single sentence: He hated his father.

Paragus had some elaborate plan for revenge. Revenge which Brolly didn't care about. King Vegeta was dead along with their planet, but his son, the prince still lived. He was under Frieza, and while he was surely suffering a great deal knowing who the tyrant was, Paragus wanted to kill him himself. Which led them to their current location, on one of many base planets for the lizard's army. They were there to "offer" their services.

"Names?" the soldier asked.

"I am Paragus, and this is my son, Brolly." With a flamboyant sweep of his arm, Paragus marched towards the armored alien. "Simply killing mere civilians isn't enough for us. Only more destruction will satisfy our saiyan bloodlust."

"Saiyan!"

"Why yes. I hear that our young prince leads a squad under Lord Frieza. We would be honored to join."

The soldier tapped his scouter twice. "Follow me." Through the winding corridors they went until they arrived at some type of holding cell. Said soldier left hastily to report his findings to Lord Frieza.

Brolly stared blankly ahead. He didn't move an inch as someone came in to announce that they would be fitted with armor and sent to Frieza's ship.

All he knew was his lost rage.

* * *

"My, my… It seems the galaxy is just crawling with the straggling saiyans, wouldn't you agree, Vegeta?"

The teenager masked his contempt and nodded. "Yes, Lord."

"What with that brother of Raditz and now these two – speaking of which, I've yet to receive an update in a while. Do tell me how Kakarot is adjusting. I hope he hasn't been too much of a handful now." Frieza swirled his glass of wine, snickering, and carefully studied the prince.

"He improves each day. Raditz has taken him under his wing, so to speak." His lips were tight with mistrust.

"Oh, brotherly love," he drawled in a sickeningly sweet voice, chuckling. "And tell me how that earthling whore I gave you is? I assume she relieves some stress from your busy schedule."

"Yes, Lord Frieza," he answered tersely.

Two years ago, Vegeta, Nappa, and Raditz had been assigned to purge Earth. Such a boring task was punishment for some imperfect work. When they had arrived, they killed everyone lazily. They had come upon a bright yellow building in the center of a city to find a tailed boy guarding a blue-haired girl while tears streaked her face.

Raditz had called him brother (in a questioning tone of course) and things hadn't improved much from there. The girl had appeared to be intelligent – something Vegeta could not pass up. After much fuss, fighting, and screaming, the two were knocked out. Raditz somehow crammed his younger brother into his pod with him, and Vegeta was forced to ride with the girl.

Frieza had decided to let the saiyan prince keep his finds. The girl was to become his sex slave, and Kakarot a member of his squad. Her name was Bulma, and within those two years he had grown a sort of attachment to her. He'd yet to so much as touch her without her permission, save for a few tense threats early on. After witnessing the life he lived and meeting Frieza firsthand, she over time developed a strong respect for him, going so far as to consider him a friend. And while he scoffed at the notion, he didn't totally deny he felt better around her.

Of course, she'd absolutely despised him for a long time. He'd hated her. Eventually they gave up, unable to live in the same quarters with such stressful tense. They sort of grew on each other. Of course, Kakarot was the only third person that was aware of their reluctant friendship.

Kakarot was more complicated. He had to go with them on purging trips to slaughter people, no matter how alien looking they were. He'd panic, and try to help them, and soon the demolition began to eat away at him. Despite previous circumstances, he'd grown close to Raditz, who begrudgingly returned some of the affection when there were no prying eyes around. If not for the comfort of his elder brother, Bulma, and guidance of Vegeta, he would have killed himself within the first month.

The beatings made things no better for him. His poor performance did not go unnoticed by Frieza, and he was tortured for it. And since he was Vegeta's subordinate, Vegeta was in turn beaten even more harshly. After six or so weeks of this, Vegeta had had enough. Kakarot had not known the repercussions of his actions, being that Vegeta was too stubborn to admit he was humiliated, and that he had assumed the injuries were sustained in training.

He got better at the killing. He got better at shutting it all out. He did not get better, however, at hiding his emotions and disgust. That had become his greatest weakness.

* * *

He entered his shared quarters to find him sitting on the scratchy cot he called a bed. He stared absently at the floor, his chest plate discarded on the other side of the small room. Raditz sighed. To be truthful, he'd grown rather fond of his long lost little brother, despite his first rejection of his heritage. While he had been fairly weak, he adapted and learned new techniques. His power level had risen in the past two years from a mere 300 to 2,000 – just 1,000 less than his.

"Kakarot, you can't keep doing this." He sat next to his kin and folded his hands in his lap.

"I know but, I hate this. I hate killing innocent people. I hate that Bulma can't experiment and learn anymore. I hate that there's no more reason to anything I do." He bit down on his lip, drawing blood.

Raditz sighed again. "I know things are bad. I've been here a lot longer than you have. I've seen what these people are capable of. Before we found you, I thought I was just like them – but you showed me that I have more potential than that. I've become stronger because of you, little brother. And there is reason." He paused, demanding his brother's eye contact. "To survive. To come back and one day claim our revenge. Face it, if we weren't the ones to kill people, Frieza would just send someone else. It's better that they die by the hands of someone with honor like yours. Think about it."

Goku faced him for a moment before hugging him tightly. It was a gesture that was still unfamiliar to Raditz, but he couldn't say it was one he didn't appreciate from time to time. "Hey, Raditz?"

He knew that pleading tone. "Again?" he asked with faked exasperation.

"Please…?"

"Fine. Now shove over." Kakarot made room for him on the cot and wrapped himself around his brother. "You know if anyone ever finds out about this, we'll probably be tortured for having weakness."

"I sleep easier with someone next to me."

"Whatever."

* * *

The next morning, all of Vegeta's squad was called into Frieza's throne room to meet the new recruits. Paragus and Brolly. The prince had heard of them before. They'd been sentenced to death by his father. Brolly for his unnaturally high power level of 10,000 on the day of his birth, and Paragus for treason. He had a feeling that the man wasn't glad to see him.

Oh shit was he right.

Kakarot and Brolly locked eyes. Frieza was going on about how they were supposed to train them and stuff, but Kakarot was transfixed. Never, had he seen eyes so dark and empty. They seemed to be frozen in a silent scream, as though he were living with an unbearable burden and pain every day.

He decided in that moment, that he would figure out what had happened to him, and help him.

Brolly, on the other hand, had never seen such innocence. Never such kindness, such hope, such passion. Everything he was feeling – it was written clear as day in his eyes. He knew his own to be cold and dead, and found himself envying the other saiyan. What justice was there that he could have his emotions, parade them, flaunt them, while his were gone. Locked away. Untouchable. What fairness was that cruelty?

He decided that he would hate Kakarot, even though he had no anger to do such a thing.

But that decision was a start.

* * *

**Author's Note: So… I know that this is an unusual couple, but I really like it and I hope that I will be able to provide character development and stuff to justify and portray why it just works. Sorry, no Chichi, no adultery. Review please!**

**~Wilted Passion**


	2. Soft Quiet

He knew he felt anger every time he laid eyes on him. He knew he felt a burning rage and jealousy every single moment he was in his presence, but there was nothing there. There was no anger. There was no jealousy. There was nothing but emptiness.

Brolly crossed his arms and stared out at the stars. He'd just woken from stasis. Counting only the occasions he'd been awake, he'd been under Frieza for almost three weeks now. In that time, he and his father had been tested by purging a planet of mediocre strength, they'd come back, and had begun to train and ingrain themselves in the lives of Vegeta's squad.

Anyway, he was on his way to purge another planet. He'd noticed that he felt no excitement or adrenaline at the prospect of bloodshed, and that would have saddened him had he had contact with such a thing as sorrow, for that was something he did enjoy greatly.

When the six pods crashed into the ground in the middle of a city, people stopped to look and stare. As all saiyans stepped out, their hushed murmurs could be heard. They were humanoid, tall, green hair, and had a powerful army.

Vegeta had already given his orders. Nappa raised two fingers, and the city was demolished. Brolly, Raditz, and Kakarot began flying to the east side of the planet while the prince, Nappa, and Paragus took the west.

As Raditz sort of flew off to kill off a small village, Brolly and Kakarot were left alone after slaughtering all of the inhabitants. They were just waiting for the army to arrive.

"I hate it, you know. All of the senseless killing. These people don't even stand a chance. It makes me sad," he said to the cold saiyan.

Brolly would have felt a pang of envy, had he been capable. There he went again, flaunting his emotions. He shrugged. "I wouldn't know."

For some reason, he'd felt he'd met Kakarot before all of this. His father had explained that they'd been born on the same day, but that was it. There was nothing that connected them. He hated the saiyan. And yet…

Seeing him frown like that only made him realize he would have been angrier. Because he'd been crying that day. It had infuriated him to no end when he was an infant. Hours of being next to the howling boy… Gods above.

But he could feel no irritation anymore, so it didn't matter.

"Hey, Brolly? Are you okay? You've been really quiet since you got here."

He aimed at another civilian. "I'm fine." No, he wasn't.

"If you say so. I'm right here if you need me though." Fool. Sentimental fool.

Kakarot's blue scouter alerted him that Raditz was coming. "What are you two morons doing!? It's been an hour and you've barely finished four villages. If you don't pick up the pace Frieza will have a fit!"

Kakarot scratched the back of his head nervously. After a couple weeks under Frieza, the tyrant had had medical experts take a look and see if they could restore his saiyan memories through some kind of operation. It hadn't done much. They had revived the implanted memories that he'd been sent to Earth with as an infant, but they had done little, if anything, to alter the human-raised warrior's attitude.

Goku hated the bloodshed. Goku cringed and cried out at every innocent's wail for help. Goku broke down. Goku choked on his own self-loathing.

Kakarot did not. Kakarot loved it. Kakarot became elated at the sight of a fresh kill. Kakarot lived for battle and slaughter. Kakarot egged it on.

Goku wanted this.

Kakarot wanted that.

The saiyan didn't even know who he was anymore.

All he knew was that there were voices in his head, and no matter what he did, they would never be quiet.

No. They just got louder-louder-louder! They didn't stop, take a breath, cease for one moment. No, no, no! Why would he ever have peace again? What had he done to deserve such a thing? Nothing! So they just screamed and moaned and throttled and yowled until he crumpled to the ground clutching his head, unable to know the difference between light and dark, where it once had been so clear.

The rest of the purge passed fairly uneventfully.

Well, unless you counted some interesting information Vegeta got his hands on.

* * *

The prince had been surrounded by bodies on all sides. None had been particularly exciting, so he was messing with his scouter to pass the time. He replayed the recording from his purge of earth, and his first conversation with the third-class and Bulma.

He'd listened to it thousands of times.

But there was something different about it.

He rewound it.

He checked it.

He checked it again.

His lips twisted into a smirk.

There was no mistake.

Paragus and Nappa were out raping women, so he was alone.

He looked at the sky's purple clouds and laughed. He laughed and he laughed and he laughed and he laughed. He doubled over and his eyes were shut with uncontrollable and slightly insane glee.

He did have a chance. He wasn't hopeless.

He had a new purpose.

He tapped the buttons, rewiring the scouter to a secret frequency. "Girl, listen carefully."

* * *

He tugged relentlessly at his hair. His jaw was clenched tightly. He was curled into a fetal position on the scratchy cot. Above him, Kakarot hovered like a damn nursemaid, not helping things much at all.

He didn't understand what these pains were. They'd started after he and his father joined Frieza's army, and they only got worse with each passing day. His head would ache for hours. At first, it had been dull enough for him to ignore, but as time passed it was like someone was screaming in his ears for hours on end.

It hurt.

Kakarot stood helplessly to Brolly's side. They were all sleeping when the other saiyan bolted upright in bed with agony. From there, things had only escalated. The strange band on his forehead was almost glowing, and neither Raditz, Nappa, nor Kakarot seemed to notice Paragus behind them.

The teenager's father held his hand extended, the identical gem in his palm glowing. Sweat rolled down his temple as he felt the seventeen year old's emotions surging beneath the surface of their imprisonment, threatening to break loose. It was hard enough ensuring his son did not remove the band.

Finally he calmed down. He took a few deep breaths before he collapsed on the bed, his face expressionless once more.

"Brolly? Brolly, are you okay? Say something," Kakarot urged. He gently shook him. The response? His hand was half-heartedly slapped away, and the teenager that had been clawing at his head moments ago rolled over, giving his back to everyone and silently telling them to go away.

Slowly, they dispersed, and went back to bed. Long after the others had left, Paragus glared at his son's back. The others weren't aware, but this wasn't the first time. He couldn't afford anymore outbursts from him. He knew Brolly was capable of the super saiyan transformation. As soon as Prince Vegeta was taken care of, Frieza was next, then the galaxy, then the Cold Empire.

And the key to it all, lay locked away in his son's soul. He had been watching him carefully. So far, he hadn't been able to pick out a definite catalyst for the changes, but he wasn't sure about Kakarot's interactions with him. He resolved to minimize contact between the boys as much as possible as he turned to go to sleep.

As it would turn out, fate was not on his side.

* * *

Vegeta burst into the cafeteria with a frown. As he sat next to his saiyan companions, he eyed each of them over. "Frieza's assigned us a triple," he announced bluntly as he dug his fork into his plate of space mush. Raditz and Nappa choked with astonishment.

"What!?" Kakarot cocked his head to the side slightly in confusion. Paragus and Brolly remained passive.

Raditz gulped. "How can he expect us to pull that off with two new recruits and Kakarot?"

"He doesn't," he shrugged casually.

Nappa stared at him with bewilderment. "How can you be so relaxed?" Vegeta offered no answer.

Doubles were hard, and triples near impossible. It was what happened when a team was tasked with purging more than one planet at once. By all accounts, they were incredibly lucky Paragus and Brolly had joined.

The prince rolled his eyes. "He's obviously testing us. The coordinates are already plugged into the pods. Nappa, you go with Raditz to Sikja. Paragus, you're with me to Nuyaw't. Kakarot, Brolly, you head to Grutven; that's the easiest one."

The earth-raised saiyan visibly flinched at the blow to his pride. He knew his soft heartedness slowed them down, and had endangered them on multiple accounts. Vegeta saw his downcast eyes and snarled.

"Now is not the time for your petty morals, Kakarot. We have three weeks to finish three planets and we won't be able to afford a lost second. Do you understand? There will be no time for you to break down, and Brolly can't make up the rest of the work that you're responsible for. Get your fucking act together." Translated: You know you'll be fine.

He nodded with understanding.

The rest of the meal passed in silence aside from the noise echoing across the rest of the cafeteria and occasional brawls that broke out between soldiers. Sometimes the place was worse than a torn up bar.

The prince could scarcely hide his smirk. Bulma may have been whiny sometimes, but she had her uses.

'First to Namek. Then Frieza,' he thought.

* * *

Goku didn't turn on the stasis in his pod. It was only a two day flight. He thought back to his life on Earth. His adventures searching for his grandpa's dragonball with Bulma and all of his friends. Just being carefree. That ended when he was fifteen.

He remembered that there was a girl who had expressed profound interest in him with promises of a marriage food. He learned that it wasn't actually food. Sure, he'd liked her well enough, but she seemed too pushy and overbearing. It didn't really matter. She was dead anyway.

What was her name? Kiki? Niki? Chichi? That sounded right. He was just glad she had been granted death.

He was still troubled over the purge. He didn't have Raditz or Vegeta to fall back on this time. Just a silent stranger he knew was suffering. He knew Goku wouldn't be able to pull through. He would have to give control to Kakarot.

It made him more than uneasy. He would remember what Kakarot did, felt, and thought. He would have it over his conscience, but he couldn't let Raditz and Vegeta down now.

Goku's thoughts drifted into a dull throb as he entered stasis.

When he landed, Kakarot woke up, stern-faced. Brolly stood off to the side, staring out. It seemed he would have to take control. His scouter beeped several times as he scanned out for the highest power levels. This was a part both he and Goku could enjoy. The thrill of a new fight. It was just how those battles ended that they did not agree with.

"Brolly," he said. "We've got about ten ki signatures that are rating over 4,000. I say we take them out first."

The other man turned slightly. Kakarot's tone had changed, and his eyes held a different glint to them. One more dangerous, risky, arrogant. He found this odd, for he had shown great distaste at the last purge.

It seemed to subtly stir something within him. Something out of reach. The sight of only bloodlust and a fierce hunger for destruction within those eyes he would have so hated and envied.

It was disappointment.

The stronger warriors of the planet were no match for the saiyan power they exhibited. Almost a quarter of the planet was done by the tenth day.

Ten days. And Kakarot was growing weary, the adrenaline dying. And so, he faded back into that boy an old man that lived on a mountain cared for. Then he looked up, and Goku saw he was surrounded by mutilated corpses of men, women, children, and every other in-between age.

There was not a soul in sight, and the deep blue mist that began clawing at his legs did not assist his apprehension. Where were they? Where was Vegeta? Where was Brolly? Bulma? Nappa? Paragus? Grandpa? Roshi? He looked around and feel to his knees in a panic as his breath quickened.

Oh Kami. Where was Raditz? Where was his brother? Raddy? Raddy? Gods above how he hated that nickname. Why couldn't Raddy comfort him? Why couldn't he protect him like he promised to? The bodies…they were staring at him! Accusing him. Their faces were gnarled and gashed. They were scratching at him! Shaking him! They were begging! Where was their hero? Their hero who should have stopped him? The villain? The murderer? Where was he? Why did he delay in slaying him?

They were screaming now! He clamped his hands over his ears but it just wouldn't stop! They were just like the voices! They were never quiet! Ever! Why couldn't they just be silent for once!? But-no! If all was quiet, he would be able to hear himself think! He wanted it to stop, he wanted it to grow!

His head snapped to the side violently.

The voices lowered to a murmur.

Brolly glared at him emotionlessly.

He reached up to prod his sore jaw only to find wetness. He'd been sobbing. He hiccupped as he stood on shaky legs. "Brolly? How-?"

He tapped the scouter once. "You were screaming. It hurt my ears."

"Oh."

He decided not to tell him of how that stirring became more violent when the communication device flickered to life. Or how he'd been begging for someone to be quiet. How it had brought physical discomfort when he pleaded for "Raddy" and death's sweet embrace.

Those things were best kept to oneself.

* * *

**Author's Note: Oh. My. Gosh. That took forever! I'm so sorry. I had it written down but then I decided I hated it so I started over. I'm proud to say that I, along with DBZer16 (check out their stories. Awesome!), will be attending high school! Yay us! **


	3. Noticing Things

He was beginning to notice things. Simple things, but things that brought a sort of...substance to him nonetheless. Like how Vrolly always sat next to him when they ate, or the fact that he hadn't told anyone about his break down on the purge, or how he didn't seem so cold and gelid anymore. It wasn't that he was warmer, exactly. It was more like melting ice. It was still cold, but had more flow as it became water.

He just seemed more human than he had when he'd first seen him.

Which reminded him, he still had to thank him.

Brolly was noticing things too. Like how Paragus glared at Kakarot when they ate, or looked at him with heavy suspicion when he returned with the emotional boy from Grutven. That would have angered him. But he wouldn't have known why.

He also saw how Kakarot would try to talk to him more. There was something in his gaze that put pressure on his chest, but he wasn't sure what it was. Gratitude? That wasn't quite it. But what else was it then? He didn't know. He doubted he ever would.

His headaches were becoming more frequent and lasting longer. They hadn't done that so much before Paragus dragged them into Frieza's game.

Noticing things...

Raditz did that too.

Which was why he wasn't sure about what he was going to do next with his younger brother, who lay obliviously asleep on his cot. He was not blind to these happenings. He had observed the somewhat dramatic shift in Kakarot's behavior. He just hoped he was wrong. For his sake.

He had disabled the wiretaps in the scouters and sat on his own cot not four feet away. "Kakarot," he whispered. The seventeen year old stirred slightly. He called again, barely louder, and he rubbed his eyes as he turned to face him.

"What is it, Raddy?" Raditz rolled his eyes in the dark. He didn't know where the knick name had come from, but he hated it.

"We need to talk."

"Those aren't good words where I come from."

"Technically, we come from the same place, and those aren't good words anywhere." He cleared his throat of insecurity. "It's about Brolly."

"What about him?" The boy sat up and leaned his broad back against the wall.

"You've been acting different since he got here. I mean, on the first purge with him, you were hardly getting anything done, and then when you go off on your own with him, you're wrapping up right on time. What's going on?"

"I think we're just getting to be friends."

Raditz shook his head. "God, you're naive. When has he expressed any emotion at all since he got here? Hell, he doesn't even get angry. He's like a robot."

He frowned. "Don't say stuff like that about him! He just doesn't express himself too well, I think. And..."

"'And' what?"

_And he probably stopped me from killing myself. _He swallowed.

"You don't, I mean, like him do you?" Raditz's voice was tight. Goku heard it a mile away. Worry.

But he didn't understand the context of the question. "What do you mean? Of course I like him. He's been nice enough since he got here."

He looked away. "That's not exactly what I meant..."

"Well, what did you mean?" He leaned forward on his elbows. Confusion burrowing itself between his brows.

Raditz waved him off. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is that you not get attached to him. Frieza and others will use that to hurt you, and you know it."

"But I'm attached to you," he said simply. Raditz's gaze softened slightly.

"That's different. We're brothers. People expect us to be around each other."

"And Brolly is a saiyan, like us. So people expect him to be in our group. You're not making sense Raditz. Why is it different?"

He sighed heavily. "It's complicated, okay? Just promise me you'll try not to be so...just keep away from him for a little."

"Why?"

"I just..." He stumbled over the words. He wasn't used to these conversations. "Don't get yourself hurt, okay?"

Kakarot smiled. He stepped over and hugged Raditz unexpectedly. "I won't. Don't worry."

As he put his hand on his brother's back to return the gesture, he couldn't help but feel he was being lied to.

* * *

Frieza stared into the blank eyes in front of him. Brolly stood rougly two yards away, his back perfectly straight. There was no one else in the room. "Now, there are a few things I feel we must discuss. Of course, I understand that you're new, but consider this your one freebie. Got that, monkey?"

Frieza would have pissed him the hell off. Just another person he had to pretend to bow to. Just another person that wanted to control him, and take from him. He would have hated him. "Yes."

Frieza grinned. "Yes, what?"

His face was stone. "Yes, Lord Frieza."

He clasped his hands together. "Wonderful! You monkeys learn so quickly. Now, I want to know what happened here." He gestured to the screen behind him. An audio file came up. He recognized it immediately.

There was some static, but the sounds were otherwise clear. There was a low, hurt sound coming from the back of someone's throat. A whimpering. Choked sobbing noises.

Despair.

_"Oh, Kami..." _the voice breathed. There was a thud of someone's knees hitting the ground. Another hurt sound._ "Please...Please be quiet...," _it whimpered. More sobbing noises._ "I'm sorry...I'm sorry. Please be quiet!... Where's Raddy? Kami, Raddy, it hurts." _The voice caught._ "Be quiet. PLEASE! Vegeta? Where's Vegeta? Bulma? Nappa? Raddy? Brolly? Stop staring at me!" _Therewas a pause. Heavy breathing.

_"Somebody kill me. Please. Please. They won't be quiet..."_

The low hurt sound came back. It was building up. Then suddenly, he was screaming, sobbing, and begging.

SMACK!

The screaming stopped. _"Brolly? How-?"_

_"You were screaming. It hurt my ears."_

Freiza was gleaming. "So, would you care to explain why you didn't execute this pathetic coward?"

Brolly's face did not falter. "I received no orders to do so."

"Ah, an obedient monkey. And, while I appreciate that obedience, I expect my soldiers to be able to make some _petty_ decisions on their own. Is that clear?" Frieza set his whine down, and stepped down from the hover chair he favored.

Brolly did not move. "Yes, sir."

Frieza's grin stretched. Now, to make sure this doesn't happen again, I'm afraid I must punish you." He didn't sound like it really bothered him that much. He shrugged. "I've found it's the only way monkeys learn. But then again, it would seem I've been too soft on some of them."

His tail whipped out and slashed his cheek, his head snapping to the side. Without his emotions, he'd nothing to trigger most of his power.

Which meant he was defenseless.

He fell hard to the floor, smacking his nose. There was a stinging in the back of his neck where Frieza had clawed at him. He gathered a sharp intake of air as he was lifted by his unruly hair. He felt his back collide with the wall, and a fist in his stomach. He felt ribs break, blood spill, and his head pound.

He coughed up blood and he was on the ground, his armor cracked and his breath shaky.

"There is no weakness in my empire. No _love_. No _affection_. No _caring_." He heated a metal rod he'd pulled off the wall with his ki as he removed Brolly's armor and peeled his body suit to expose his torso with his tail.

The boy gasped with pain as the sharp burning metal punctured his shoulder. Searing flesh and boiling his blood, he yelled.

And all while this was happening? Goku had masked his ki, and was crouched in a storage closet with his hands covering his mouth. He had felt Brolly's ki spike, and had completely ignored Frieza's beside it. He could only wait the beating out. Take him to the medical ward when it was over.

With every thud, moan, yelp, and snap, his hands tugged more furiously at his bangs. There was an awful constricting in his chest, and his breath was short.

Why did it hurt so much that it was him?

Eventually, Frieza's ki leveled out, as did Brolly's, but far too low to be healthy. That was about 45 minutes later. Kakarot stood and kept his energy low as he dashed down the hall, waiting for the door to open so he could help.

Within seconds, it slid just far enough for a body to be tossed half-heartedly into the hall for someone to pick up.

He immediately crouched down to sling one of Brolly's shoulders over his. He set at a brisk pace, careful not to jostle him too much. He refused to look at his injuries yet. He had to keep moving, even if he smelt burnt flesh and blood.

He pushed roughly by a technician into the medic ward, laying Brolly onto an examination table while he called for a doctor. As he did this, his eyes widened, and he had to swallow a whimper.

Finally looking at his wounds, he saw the burnt hole in his shoulder, oozing thick blood, various slashes either from a whip or Frieza's tail, red smeared on his stomach and arms, broken fingers, and discolored bruises everywhere.

From the corner of his eye, he saw the doctor pulling out a needle and decided to back out of the room. "Alert me when he's about to wake up." He tried to make his voice intimidating, the way Nappa or Raditz did when Vegeta was hurt, but it came out as more of a polite suggestion. A technician nodded absently, and he turned to leave.

Things, it seemed, were always getting worse.

* * *

Bulma was excited. No. More than that, she was giddy. But, she was also on edge. She didn't want to get her hopes up, but she couldn't help it. Vegeta may have found their glory road to freedom! And the key was an old enemy from earth, and a guardian.

They had two options. Neither were particularly safe, but at this point, it was just a matter of what was doable.

"Would you calm down? Your energy's jumping everywhere and it's annoying." Vegeta sat next to her on the cot within the room they shared. She lived in the room with him under the pretense that she was _servicing _him. Which was partially true, just not that R-rated.

"Shut up. I don't usually get to be this happy, so I'm going all out. I mean, this could actually work!"

His eye twitched. "Why don't you say that a little louder. You know, enough for the whole fucking base to hear?"

She waved him off. Tinkering with the device in her hand, she crossed some wires and shut the back tightly. Vegeta leaned in with anxiety as she pressed down on the top button.

There was a beep, and a flash as the device turned on. Seven dots appeared.

"You did it, girl..."

She beamed as she threw her arms around his neck and held onto him. Reluctantly, he placed his hands on the small of her back. "We could get out of here. We could find a home."

"I know. But we must have patience. One wrong move could get us all killed." He pried her off of him and reached for his scouter. It was risky to have the wiretap disabled for too long. An hour was the most he would risk.

Before he adjusted the last frequency setting he paused. "No one does anything out of the ordinary for a while. We need to lay low. Especially with Brolly and Paragus having just joined. A year, maybe more. I need to know that we have time to work absolutely everything out."

Bulma sighed, but nodded all the same. "I understand, Vegeta." She kissed his cheek, and he turned the wiretaps back on.

* * *

_A/N: I cannot. In a million years. Express how sorry I am for such ridiculously late updates. I was kinda failing my math class, and I had to stay after school and stuff for a while for tutoring, but it's up to a B now, and I plan on keeping it that way! Next chap is in progress. A week or two at the most. Thank you so much._


	4. Unforeseen Consequences

He was there within twenty seconds after the medic called despite it being close to midnight. He arrived just in time to see Brolly step out of the tank. Kakarot breathed a sigh of relief as he saw him standing and strong. His bruises, cuts, burns, and breaks were gone.

So were his clothes.

Now, he'd seen a naked man before. Back on Earth, he hadn't been bothered at all with jumping into the lake undressed - even if one of his friends was there. Nudity had never bothered him at all. It was just someone's body. It wasn't anything nasty or perverse.

So why were his cheeks so flushed?

He cleared his throat and averted his eyes while Brolly got dressed. He waited until they stepped out in the hall together before he talked. "How are you feeling?"

He popped his neck a couple times, stretching. "Fine."

They walked around the base for a while, neither of them really sleepy. Eventually they wound up sitting on the roof above the hangar. Just sitting there, he grew curious. "So, I know Frieza doesn't give good reasons for beatings. Not that there is _any_ good reason, but, what made him do that to you? You were hurt pretty bad..." His voice tinkered off.

Brolly looked at him, somewhat surprised. Why was it any of his concern? What made this person stare at him like that? "Grutven." Figuring that was enough for him to know, he looked out over the desert-like landscape. He hated sand. Tropical climates were much nicer.

Kakarot leaned forward. "What do you mean, 'Grutven?' We finished a full day before the deadline!"

"Not the mission specifically. What happened with you." It was odd. For some reason, he couldn't come out and blatantly state it was his breakdown. It was bizarre.

"With me?"

He hesitated. "When you freaked out. Frieza said I should have killed you."

Kakarot's eyes grew wide. The scouter had been on. That was how Brolly had found him in the first place. Which meant... "He beat you because of me." His voice trembled slightly. He felt his eyes welling up with tears, something that was happening more and more often.

Brolly shrugged, but when he glanced back at the other saiyan, he felt it again. That pinprick at his heart. He was covering his mouth with his hand, and looked like he was about to be sick... Or off himself. Kakarot looked at him and shut his eyes.

Brolly gasped. Goku was hugging him tight, his face buried in his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

He felt a strange warmth spread throughout his body and tingle his fingers. He'd never felt anything like it and it was startling. Yet it somehow felt good. Idly he wondered if Kakarot's hair was as soft as it looked. He breathed. The other boy's scent was sweet. His chest was tight, and something in him cracked. Just a hairline fracture - but he felt something. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was faint.

Without thinking, he ran a hand through Kakarot's hair. It really _was _soft. He didn't hug him back, just sat with his fingers in his hair while he calmed down. He wondered if he still would have hated him for his emotions, like he'd told himself at first.

It occurred to him that he had once wished for this kind of contact from his father. That seemed so long ago. When he was able to feel. If Paragus so much as looked at him now, he wanted to rip out his throat. It was different somehow. He wondered if he ever got his emotions back, would they be the same?

He didn't know, nor did he particularly care.

Goku was just breathing his scent in. It was sort of like lemons and lightning, if lightning had a scent, but it was nice. Brolly's earrings glinted gently in the light. His heart was crushed with guilt. He was weak and Brolly paid the price. He gripped him tighter and felt his hand in his hair, calloused and strong.

He didn't understand why it meant so much. He'd only known Brolly for a few months. Not like he knew Bulma, Raditz, or even Vegeta. Even though he didn't know why, he didn't question that he was important to him. There was something special about Brolly, something that tied them. He didn't know what it was or where it came from, but he was glad it was there.

Reluctantly, he pulled away. He was glad he'd forgotten his scouter in his room. Brolly only wore his when absolutely necessary.

Brolly appeared different when he released him. Something in him. It was then that he remembered. The first time they had met, his eyes had looked to him as though frozen in a scream. Empty and hollow. No longer was that the case. They were alit, and fuller.

* * *

Raditz was awake when Kakarot got back to their room. "It took half an hour to check up on him?"

He scratched the back of his neck. "We chatted for a while. You didn't have to stay up late, you know."

Raditz rolled his eyes and turned over so he laid on his back. "What the hell was I supposed to do? First you run up to me this afternoon on the verge of hysterics because he finally got a beating. Then, when your scouter goes off in the middle of the night you rush off to check up on him even though you know he's perfectly fine. And then you stay gone for over half an hour... something's going on."

"What do you mean?" The older brother face-palmed.

"Not this again, " he groaned.

"What again?"

He sat up and glared at him. "You know, you're a real idiot." Kakarot was about to protest by saying that was mean, but Big Brother Raddy held his hand up. "I'm going to start a conversation I'll probably regret, but whatever. What were you guys talking about?"

He stiffened. As much as he trusted Raditz, that was a pretty intimate moment, and he wasn't comfortable talking about it. He was also sure that Brolly wouldn't want him saying anything that would embarrass him. "Just, what happened with Frieza."

"It doesn't take 30 minutes to say 'I got the shit beat out of me for a bullshit reason.'"

"Well, we were talking about why."

"Who the fuck cares why? That sadistic freak doesn't need a reason... Unless, something happened?"

_Brolly stopped me from killing myself when we went on our mission together and Frieza found out so he punished him for not killing me or something because I was too stupid to turn off the scouter and I found out about it and now I feel incredibly guilty and I don't know what to do, Raddy._

"Nothing we could figure out. I mean, we finished Grutven on time and everything, so we don't know."

Raditz could sense there was more than his little brother was letting on, but he was tired and it could wait until morning. "Fine. Goodnight."

Kakarot dropped his easy expression when Raditz closed his eyes. "Goodnight." He crawled into bed, but did not sleep. He thought back on the day, his mind swimming with Brolly. How had it felt to sense his ki lowering while he was pummeled? To rush him off to the medic ward? To walk in and see he was okay (_more_ than okay, really). He blushed. To find out it was his fault?

He didn't know words to describe those feelings. He didn't think they even existed. The whole day had been a storm of shifting emotions. He wondered if this was like what Bulma complained about once a month.

But when he hugged him... There was sort of a word for that. It didn't quite fit, but it was as close as he would get.

Wonderful.

Slowly his eyes drifted closed, and blurred images of the other saiyan haunted his dreams.

* * *

The next day, he was tense. Tense because he had woken up that morning to the realization that Frieza had that tape. And he could play it if he wanted. Across the entire base. And not only would he be humiliated completely, but Vegeta, Bulma, and Raddy would find out, and who knows what they'd do?

He was grinding his teeth throughout training, losing his focus in spars, and everyone in their group was noticing. Something was off with him.

He felt defenseless and threatened. He could feel Kakarot clawing for control, but remained Goku through force of will. He could not let Kakarot do anything. Goku was the one he trusted. Something was always hurting whenever he woke up from Kakarot.

He'd rather take a beating than the entire army know he was suicidal.

He was smacked out of his thoughts when a gloved fist rammed into him. He crashed to the floor and was slow to get up. Vegeta was glaring at him. "What the fuck's wrong with you? You're hardly fighting back at all!"

Brolly watched Kakarot stand up wearily from his spar with Paragus.

"I don't know. I'm just off today," he said helplessly. He wiped some blood from his lips and rolled his shoulders.

The prince landed in front of him. "Tch. Bullshit you're just off. Focus you moron." They started at it again, and Kakarot put all his attention on the fight. Getting distracted when up against Vegeta was like putting a gun in your mouth.

Paragus had noticed his odd behavior as well. However, he wasn't very concerned. Brolly's power had shot up after yesterday's event, and that meant more power for him to control. He eyed Vegeta with contempt. The bastard was the spitting image of his father - the worthless king. He was going to have to make a move soon, because he couldn't take living near him for much longer.

As for the rest of them? They'd probably just wind up as collateral damage. With his son's abilities at his finger tips, he wasn't concerned.

The next mission that they all went on together was when he would strike. By manipulating Brolly's emotions and only letting out the primal rage, bloodlust, and sadism he knew existed, his son would be unstoppable. When they were done and the prince was weakened, he imagined himself standing proud over the royal's body, delivering the final blow. The mere imagery of it was elating.

There was a whine as the speakers came on and a voice cleared their throat. "All personnel: At the orders of Lord Frieza, report to J-1587 immediately. I repeat, J-1587."

Goku's heart' leapt to his throat. He knew it was unlikely that it had anything to do with him. Why would Frieza go to the trouble? He would get himself all worked up and it wouldn't even be that big a deal. Just new regulations, or mass assignments.

But all the same he couldn't stop the sweating of his palms or the erratic twitching of his ki.

The conference hall was large enough to fit everyone, and for all to see Frieza in his hover chair on the elevated platform he spoke from. It was actually Zarbon, though, who was doing the speaking today. The ruler himself sat back looking...not bored, but impatient.

Kakarot swallowed as the room filled with soldiers and technicians. He felt a nudge at his shoulder. Raditz shot him a questioning look, and he threw up a fake smile. While his brother didn't look like he was buying it, he let it drop as the room quieted.

"You're all here. Fantastic," Zarbon began loudly. "As of today, we will be implementing a few new regulations concerning the high death rate of our darling technicians." Kakarot sighed through his nose as the girly green boy began to describe the new rules. It wasn't that...just like he knew it would be.

Zarbon finished up, and everyone stood at attention, waiting to be dismissed. But they weren't. Frieza came forward, a terrible grin on his face.

"Now, now, before I let you all go, I feel that a special issue needs to be addressed." His heart was in his throat again. He felt Vegeta glance at him oddly as his ki fluctuated just slightly enough to go undetected by the scouters.

The lizard put on a show. "It's terrible sometimes. There are those among us who are so very _unhappy_. I pity these people. They're ungrateful. I want you all to listen very closely to what you're about to hear."

The static began. Raditz and Vegeta knew why his brother was acting strange.

He couldn't move throughout it. Had he really been screaming so much? Crying? Begging for death? His own sobs racked the hall and he could only shut his eyes tight enough for them to hurt.

There was wrenching, furious humiliation, shame, and pain. He wanted to vomit. He wanted a hug from Raddy. Something - anything but to be standing there that moment. He wanted to be back on the rooftop with Brolly where the desert stretched out before them and the crescent moon hung above them.

He could hear some of the soldiers snicker. Most were quiet. He felt the eyes of Vegeta, Raditz, Nappa, and Paragus on him heavily. But not Brolly. He saw him staring at Frieza with a cold look in his eyes.

_"You were screaming. It hurt my ears."_

No one said a word.

Frieza chuckled. Gradually, others joined in the laughter. He wanted to cover his ears and run out. "That's quite enough now. I haven't even gotten to the lesson yet." Everyone stopped. "Kakarot? Would you be so kind as to come up here?"

He felt his feet reluctantly trudge to the front of the room, though his mind was desperately trying to make them turn around. Go back. Go back to Earth. Be safe with everyone. Go back to Grandpa Gohan. Go back to nothing. Float as nothing and be safe.

Not here. Don't go here.

The second he stepped up to the platform, Frieza forced him to his knees. He saw Raditz watching. His face betrayed nothing, but he could sense he was distraught. There was nothing to do. Vegeta was grinding his teeth. The prince was probably furious with him for embarrassing him like this.

"Be a good example for the rest of the crew," he whispered delightfully. "Some of you may feel inclined to do what this saiyan's softhearted partner did and help them. I am here to tell you that this kind of whining is not tolerated, and any of my men caught doing such a thing are to be killed on the spot. Never mind if the rest of the mission is too much for one person. This kind of trash is only a liability."

He smirked cruelly. "If any of you act in such a distasteful manner, the following will be the consequences."

He grabbed Kakarot by the hair and got out of his hover chair in one fluid motion, slamming his body into the ground. The saiyan felt his armor literally ripped off of him and tossed to the side. His bare chest was exposed. The tyrant gathered his ki in a whip and cracked it on his pectorals. He winced at the burning. This wasn't even a fight.

Several more whips followed, and each stung more than the last, ripping and burning his flesh. Frieza backed off slightly, deliberating what to do next to entice the crowd.

Goku didn't want to move. "_Get up, Kakarot, you fool! Get the fuck up right NOW!" _Vegeta yelled in his head. He looked up at the prince at the opposite end of the hall. _"I will not have you humiliate our race further by keeling over like a rat. I order you to get up right this damn second!"_

Wearily, he stood. Frieza looked mildly surprised. His tail lashed out and Goku scarcely moved out of the way. The villain leapt forward while he was still off balance and pinned him up against the wall by the neck. He coughed up blood as the small white fist rammed into him, breaking his ribs easily.

Frieza let him drop to the ground as he fought to clear his lungs of blood. He folded his arms behind his back and circled him like a shark. "Don't you want to die, monkey? Don't you want 'Raddy' to make it all better?" He laughed, and so did the other men. He reached out and gripped his tail suddenly and painfully, causing him to cry out.

He dug his pointed black nails into the sensitive flesh. _"Don't you __**dare**__ scream! Don't you fucking __**dare, **__Kakarot!"_

He bit his lip until it bled, whimpering like a beaten dog. It hurt. It hurt unbearably. Not the pain in his tail, chest, or throat though. The degrading shame cut into him like ice. He couldn't bring himself to look at his friends.

He wanted to cry.

* * *

It was nearly an hour before he finally lost consciousness. His tail, arm, ankle, and heart were broken. Everyone had left by the time the saiyans managed to get to him. There was blood dripping down his chin and he was coated in a thin layer of sweat.

Vegeta was absolutely _livid_.He had been humiliated because Kakarot couldn't handle it after only two years. He'd been stuck in this hell since he was five! And yet he felt only disgust towards himself for letting this happen to someone he was supposed to protect. He couldn't even look Raditz in the eyes.

Another failure to add to the list. Powerless Prince.

Abruptly, he spun on his heel and marched out, the door slamming behind him.

Raditz could only stare at the broken body of his brother. He'd wanted to kill himself. He _would_ have if Brolly hadn't been there t stop him. He suddenly appreciated the soft spoken saiyan a lot more.

He didn't know what to do.

While he'd been thinking and staring and not knowing what to do, Brolly had slung his brother's unbroken arm across his shoulders and was already on his way to the infirmary.

Well, at least he knew what was going on between those two now.

* * *

_Author's Notes: Bleh! There is no excuse for such late updates so I'm not even going to bother with an apology. However, if you read DBZer16's stuff (which you should) give her some slack on the updates, por favor. She's had some messed up crap going on and it's definitely taken some time to work out. Let's just say that stalkers are a pain in the ass._


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